Lanzarote

Lanzarote is the most easterly of the Canary Islands, and it lies 70 miles off the coast of Saharan Africa. The Island of Lanzarote lies alongside the Chinijo Archipelago, which consists of the islets of La Graciosa, Alegranza, Montaña Clara, Roque del Este and Roque del Oeste. It is a World Biosphere Reservation, and its unique volcanic landscape, which local farmers use to capture the humidity of the Trade Winds, has made it an essential place to visit for everyone who visits the Canaries. The island offers quiet beaches along with powerful waves, which are ideal for surfing, windsurfing, underwater diving and fishing. Thanks to extremely low rainfall and temperatures that rarely fall below 20c. Lanzarote makes an all year round perfect holiday destination attracting visitors from the UK and Ireland. Lanzarote has over 90 beaches the vast majority of which boast fine golden sand. Today Lanzarote is best known as the Island of fire, as a result of the worlds longest ever volcanic eruption, which lasted over 6 years from 1730. About 400 years ago the eruptions stopped, the lava stilled and the skies cleared. The giant Volcanoes that had so dramatically changed Lanzarote’s fertile landscape fell into slumber. The years that passed left a bleak existence for the Guanchos that inhabited the island. Farming small crops and fishing were about the only ways to survive and due to Lanzarote’s location on the gate to the new World, pirate raids were common. Lanzarote is unique, even in the Canaries, it has long golden beaches of sand carried on winds from the Sahara. It also has jet black beaches of volcanic sand, a testament to the crushing power of the Atlantic Ocean. There is the huge national park, an area untouched by a human foot since the cessation of the volcanoes, that is of course except for the lunar astronauts who prepared the moon landings on our Island.

Thanks to César Manrique, Lanzarote has become big on attractions offering visitors much more than beaches alone, Cesar’s passion for the island drove him to create tourist attractions for visitors to enjoy and fall in love with as he did. Thanks to César Manrique this beautiful island has remained unspoilt thanks to many of his ideas, such as no billboards, buildings only painted white and restrictions on building heights. No structure in Lanzarote is allowed to be built over 2 stories tall. All inland windows and doors should be green or brown and all seaside windows and doors should be blue or brown. All buildings are white. This gives a uniform, aesthetically pleasing, tranquil aspect to the island that is missing on the other Canaries and mainland Spain. Lanzarote is an island of natural beauty which boasts dramatic coastlines, spectacular volcanoes, quaint villages and picturesque towns.

Main holiday resorts in Lanzarote

Arrecife – The political and commercial capital of the islands,It boasts a population of around 40,000. Banks, shops,restaurants and bars are found along the promenade.

Costa Teguise – One of the main tourist areas with long golden beaches. There are plenty of shops, restaurants, bars and banking facilities.For golf lovers there is an international 18 hole course.

El Golfo -A stunning contrast of black beach and a deep green lagoon, this is a unique and spectacular sight. There are a handful of typical canarian fishing restaurants in this small village.

Famara – On the west coast of the island, this beach is one of the prettiest with its magnificent backdrop of mountains. The sea is not recommended for swimming as the undercurrents are strong but surfing and surfboarding are great fun. walk over the rocks to la Caleta, a quaint village near by with a few bars and restaurants.

Haria valley of the thousand palms – There was once a tradition that a palm tree was planted when a baby girl was born, or two if it was a boy. Set deep in the Valley is the town of Haria, with lovely restaurants and bars.

La Graciosa – one of the smallest of the canary islands, La Graciosa is a nature reserve, you can visit the island by ferry from Orzola, leaving in the morning and returning later in the afternoon.

Los Hervideros – Watch the power of the sea in all its glory. A solid lava mass at the cliff edge has a sheer drop to the sea. Rolling waves crash through multiple crevices and lava bubbles, which expel the water with great force.

Jameos Del Agua – A prehistoric eruption created natural caves with roofless bubbles of lava. A beautiful lake is connected to the sea from underground, and is home to arare species of blind albino crab. Cesar Manrique created a setting of artistically arranged flora with a complex of restaurant, bar cafeteria, and a concert cave with wonderful acoustics.

Mirador Del Rio – another of Manrique’s creations is a lookout point from the top of a cliff, hundreds of metres above the sea level. The Views over the island of La Graciosaare breath taking.

Orzola – A delightful small fishing village at the North of the island, here you can see the locals returning from the sea with their catch every afternoon.

Papagayo – At the southernmost tip of the islands there are crystal clear waters and white sands of Papagayo. Its a bumpy ride to the beachon the unmade road. There are no services so take some supplies and prepare for a climb down to the beach.

Playa Blanca – In the south Playa Blanca was once a small fishing village. With recent developments, Playa Blanca is now a major tourist resort. Ferries depart daily to fuertevertura from the harbour.

Puerto Calero – Between Puerto Del Carmen and Playa Quemada, the brothers Calero designed and built a beautiful Marina. Restaurants line the harbour front and there are a growing number of shops.

Puerto Del Carmen – Lanzarote’s main tourist resort, 12 kilometres of golden sandy beaches and is the hub of the islands night life. Clubs, discos, casino, bars, restaurants and shops galore can be found along the length of the strip.

Timanfaya – The Fire Mountains – Fifty-one square kilometres of volcano and lava fields have been turned into a national park. A coach will take you across the volcanic landscape to the restaurant, where the kitchens are heated by volcanic power.

Yaiza – an exceptionally pretty town to be found en route to Playa Blanca. There is a beautiful church and a few typical canarian restaurants.

• Capital: Arrecife.
The rocky reefs situated in front of the town gave their name to the capital of the island and protected it from the ocean currents. The town was originally built around a salt water lake, known as the Lake of San Ginés. The capital municipality is the smallest in Lanzarote, despite being the most populated.

• Museums: 13/ Museum of the Canarian Emigrant; Museum Palace of Spinola; Museum of International Modern Art, Castle of San José; Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography, Castle of San Gabriel; Agricultural Museum El Patio; César Manrique Foundation; Museum of Cetaceans; the Tanit Ethnographic Museum; the Lanzarote Aeronautical Museum; the Museum House and Monument to the Peasant; the Museum of Science and Technology; the Arts Centre Santo Domingo (Convent of Santo Domingo), and El Almacén.